Handling of betting scandal simply shameful

INCOMPETENCE is nothing new to sports administration. In this country, racing has ebbed and flowed in its fortunes over the years depending on decisions made by men and (a handful of) women at the pointy end of the game. Still, after more than 150 years, the decisions made by the present hierarchy over the handling of the Damien Oliver controversy have set a new standard.

Incompetence is to be expected and can even be healthy in the long run, but purposeful incompetence is another thing altogether. It treats the supporters of the sport with contempt. And, like no other sport on the planet, it is the gambling fans of horse racing that keep it going. With each bet, racing's wheel turns. With each bet, the sport rolls forward.

For it to be suggested that Oliver should be allowed to continue to ride because investigations into other matters involving the jockey are incomplete is misleading at best and bordering on immoral.

It is understood that Oliver has confessed to racing officials to placing an illegal bet on a rival horse in a race that he rode in. The fact that he may have run up a string of similar rorts should harden the resolve to banish him, not allow to continue to work.

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Oliver's admission that he made the illegal bet should disqualify him from plying his trade. For Racing Victoria to hide behind the word ''process'' displays a distinct lack of courage from racing's leaders. It has nothing to do with the process. It has all to do with the image. Well, they have made a meal out of that.

If Oliver was dealt with some weeks ago when he met Racing Victoria officials, there would have been a small dint in racing's brand at the start of the spring carnival. Revelations that one of the sport's most famous jockeys was caught illegally betting would have caused a stir that would have blown over by the time the next race had been run.

Punters have a supreme gift of being able to shrug off disappointments and move on with confidence. Scandals are good fodder for the moment, but the next race is always just minutes away.

But what has happened here is that Racing Victoria has permitted Oliver to ride despite privately admitting his guilt, so the spring carnival can go ahead without any of that nasty stuff coming out in the papers. Well, it has come out and the news for Racing Victoria is that the nasty stuff has just got a lot worse. Oliver will still face a stiff sanction, but so should those at Racing Victoria who permitted this bigger, darker mess to fester.

We now not only have our most decorated rider in disgrace but also question marks as a result of the failure to sideline him in the middle of the spring carnival. The lack of action has ensured that the stink from this mess lingers into the future.

Not to be outdone by Racing Victoria's head-in-the-sand approach, the Victoria Racing Club's chief executive, Dale Monteith, put in a gem of his own on Tuesday when he said it was disappointing that revelations of Oliver's admission of guilt should be aired on such a day as the Cup. Rarely, if ever, has a top official in one of the biggest sports in the country missed the point by as much has Monteith. Ditto for the Premier.